Epinephrine Research Paper

Words: 680
Pages: 3

Have you ever wondered why you get a rush and your heart starts racing when you are scared or in pain? The hormone and neurotransmitter, epinephrine is the reason for these reactions called the “fight or flight response” and it is a very useful hormone in our body and serves many purposes. Another name for epinephrine is also “adrenaline”. It is secreted mainly by the medulla of the adrenal gland and pairs with another hormone called norepinephrine which is equally as important.
Epinephrine functions primarily to increase cardiac output and to raise glucose levels in the blood for the fight or flight responses. When you are in a stressful or physically demanding situation your body reacts by releasing adrenaline into the bloodstream. It speeds up your heart rate, raises blood pressure, alters the immune system to raise glucose levels, increases pupil dilation, increases the blood flow to your muscles, and opens up airways to help with sudden reactions. Adrenaline in other words manipulates many
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Anaphylaxis reaction is serious and sometimes fatal if not treated immediately after exposal to the alergen. Anaphylaxis could be caused by an assortment of triggers such as peanuts, shellfish, certain drugs like penicillin, or even insect venoms like bee or wasp stings. Treating this can be simple by the use of the epinephrine hormone in an easy to use shot called an Epi Pen. This shot stops the effects of the allergic reaction by relaxing the smooth muscles of the lungs allowing them to open up. Epinephrine can treat asthma in many cases, because it binds to the beta adrenergic receptors on the lung muscle cells. This allows the smooth muscles of the lungs to relax, which opens up the airways and allows air flow and also speeds up the heart rate so the blood can circulate the oxygen to your